Haze and smoke from peat fires contain a complex mixture of pollutants that pose serious health risks to the human body.
Among these are tiny microparticles which can penetrate deep into the lungs and, in some cases, enter the bloodstream, causing inflammation, chronic lung diseases and increased risk of premature death.
Another concern is the toxic greenhouse gases that are being unleashed into the air.
“Here in Central Kalimantan, especially in Palangkaraya, the sky has turned yellow and hazy,” says Riduan, head of the Palangkaraya Health Office. “So what are the residents actually breathing in? It’s not fresh oxygen; it’s carbon dioxide and pollutants. And what happens as a result? The body – specifically the brain – doesn’t get enough oxygen.”
Children, older adults and pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to the dangers of haze, especially during prolonged periods of exposure, when the health impacts can accumulate.
In places like Palangkarya, the official advice is to stay indoors and avoid going out. But Dastiti says this is unrealistic.
“I still need to buy vegetables, stock up on food, purchase school supplies, and take care of other necessities,” she explains. “It’s simply not possible, and I feel like the people who say things like that have no idea what is actually happening here.”
Dastiti’s utmost priority, however, is the health and wellbeing of her children. And when the haze grows heavy, she is quick to force them inside.
“With conditions being so unsafe, I have no choice,” she says. “Our young children should be at the park, playing with their friends and going to school. Instead, they are locked inside the house.”
Lola Macitri, a 37-year-old who lives in the rural village of Ramang, 50km (31 miles) north of Palangkaraya, has been similarly housebound. As the smog has deepened over the past few weeks – from dusty grey to amber yellow and, more recently, burnt orange – she and her family have come to spend most of their time indoors.
Her children, like many others in Indonesia’s more haze-affected areas, have been doing their school classes online, she says, while she and other adults struggle to manage half-a-day’s work out in the poisonous air.
